Most of the times when you tell someone you are a scuba diver they’ve already labeled you as the cool guy/gal practicing an extreme sport. You’re the perfect swimmer, courageous to the bone – not afraid of water, sharks or whatever other creatures loom in the deep blue ocean, perfectly fit and prepared to practice such a “dangerous” sport, not to mention expensive. They look up to you in admiration probably thinking they’ll never be able to do it themselves… Or so I’ve been told most of the times I’ve dared open my mouth and proclaim I’m a scuba diver;). Read the rest of this entry »

In September 2013 you can hone your skills in underwater photography with top Norwegian photographer Christian Skauge. The photo workshop, unique in Malta, is organized by Dive Malta and Norwegian tour operator DykkeBazaar. Read the rest of this entry »

Samba/LMC (Loss of Motor Control) = (usually used in freediving) after breath holding, due to a lack of oxygen in the brain, the first stage of an impending blackout is a reaction where the arms and legs start to convulse, giving the appearance that the freediver is dancing the samba.

As a scuba aficionado, I found that a short compendium of underwater swimming techniques may be very useful for all those divers looking to improve their underwater swimming skills. The simple “kick your feet”, which we instinctively apply, is insufficient in certain environments, because it raises sediment, it propels us only forward and has a certain amount of the propulsion force oriented upwards, which requires a slightly negative buoyancy to counterbalance the tendency to rise.

We are living in a world in which mobile phones are becoming our best companions, offering support in any activity we are undertaking. Scuba diving is definitely not an exception, with various applications being developed for it.

As a scuba diver we invest in gear, some just as a desire for comfort and safety, others, why not admit it, because we like state of the art gadgets and, eventually, exclusive ones. We forget sometimes that we have another important “gadget” we have to take care of: our own body. Read the rest of this entry »